Career and Education Opportunities for Public Address Announcers in Tempe, Arizona

Public address announcer career and educational opportunities abound in Tempe, Arizona. There are currently 170 jobs for public address announcers in Arizona and this is projected to shrink 7% to 150 jobs by 2016. This is not quite as good as the national trend for public address announcers, which sees this job pool growing by about 8.2% over the next eight years. In general, public address announcers make announcements over loud speaker at sporting or other public events.

The income of a public address announcer is about $10 per hour or $21,110 annually on average in Arizona. In the U.S. as a whole, their income is about $13 hourly or $27,420 yearly on average. Incomes for public address announcers are not quite as good as in the overall category of Announcing in Arizona, and better than the overall Announcing category nationally. Public address announcers work in a variety of jobs, including: barker, ringmaster, and commercial announcer.

The Tempe area is home to seventy-six schools of higher education, including three within twenty-five miles of Tempe where you can get a degree as a public address announcer. The most common level of education for public address announcers is a high school diploma or GED. It will take only a short time to learn to be a public address announcer if you already have a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Public Address Announcer

In general, public address announcers make announcements over loud speaker at sporting or other public events. They also may act as master of ceremonies or disc jockey at weddings, parties, or other gathering places.

Public address announcers greet attendees and serve as masters of ceremonies at banquets and other events. Finally, public address announcers preview any music intended to be broadcast over the public address system.

Every day, public address announcers are expected to be able to speak clearly. It is also important that they articulate ideas and problems.

It is important for public address announcers to inform patrons of coming events at a specific venue. They are often called upon to read prepared scripts describing acts or tricks presented during performances. They also instruct and calm crowds during emergencies. They are sometimes expected to improvise commentary on items of interest. Somewhat less frequently, public address announcers are also expected to furnish running commentaries of event efforts, such as play-by-play descriptions, or explanations of official decisions.

Public address announcers sometimes are asked to meet with event directors so as to review schedules and exchange data related to details. They also have to be able to furnish running commentaries of event efforts, such as play-by-play descriptions, or explanations of official decisions and furnish data concerning plays to scoreboard operators. And finally, they sometimes have to inspect and announce crowd control procedures before the beginning of each event.

Like many other jobs, public address announcers must be reliable and be able to work independently and make decisions on their own.

Similar jobs with educational opportunities in Tempe include:

News Analyst. Analyze, interpret, and broadcast news received from various sources.

Radio and Television Announcer. Talk on radio or television. May interview guests, act as master of ceremonies, read news flashes, identify station by giving call letters, or announce song title and artist.

Reporter. Collect and analyze facts about newsworthy events by interview, investigation, or observation. Report and write stories for newspaper, news magazine, or television.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Public Address Announcer Training

Ottawa University-Phoenix - Phoenix, AZ

Ottawa University-Phoenix, 10020 North 25th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85021. Ottawa University-Phoenix is a small university located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a private not-for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 1,329 students. Ottawa University-Phoenix has a bachelor's degree program in Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric which graduated one student in 2008.

Grand Canyon University - Phoenix, AZ

Grand Canyon University, 3300 W Camelback Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85017. Grand Canyon University is a large university located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 22,087 students and an admission rate of 100%. Grand Canyon University has a bachelor's degree program in Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric.

Arizona State University - Tempe, AZ

Arizona State University, , Tempe, AZ 85287. Arizona State University is a large university located in Tempe, Arizona. It is a public school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 67,082 students and an admission rate of 82%. Arizona State University has bachelor's degree, master's degree, and doctor's degree programs in Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric which graduated 467, fifteen, and nine students respectively in 2008.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Tempe, Arizona

Tempe, Arizona photo by File Upload Bot

Tempe is situated in Maricopa County, Arizona. It has a population of over 175,523, which has grown by 10.7% over the last ten years. The cost of living index in Tempe, 95, is below the national average. New single-family homes in Tempe cost $163,900 on average, which is far less than the state average. In 2008, sixty-three new homes were constructed in Tempe, down from one hundred seven the previous year.

The three big industries for women in Tempe are educational services, accommodation and food services, and health care. For men, it is accommodation and food services, educational services, and construction. The average commute to work is about 20 minutes. More than 39.6% of Tempe residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 14.6%, is higher than the state average.

The unemployment rate in Tempe is 7.5%, which is less than Arizona's average of 9.3%.

The percentage of Tempe residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 39.7%, is less than the national average but more than the state average. The largest religious groups are the Catholic Church, the LDS (Mormon) Church and the Southern Baptist Convention.

Tempe is home to the Casa Fiesta Travel Trailer Resort and the Fair Lanes Village Center as well as Birchett Park and Hudson Park. Shopping malls in the area include Arizona Mall of Tempe, Arizona Mills Mall and Baseline Village Shopping Center. Visitors to Tempe can choose from Motel 6, Executive Suites Extended Stay and Best Western Nova Plus Test Property for temporary stays in the area.